One Thing
by Heather Cat
Summary: The Turks are sent into the Midgar tunnels for a final battle, and Reno discovers he makes his own choices.


One Thing  
  
//Restless tonight  
//Cause I wasted the light  
//Between both these times  
//I drew a really thin line  
//It's nothing I planned  
//And not that I can  
//But you should be mine  
//Across that line  
  
"We all have choices to make," a rich voice practically oozed from the background. "Isn't that what he used to say?"  
  
Scarlet moved forward towards the three Turks standing across the table from her. She was sleek in her red dress with her blond hair tumbling haphazardly across her shoulders where it escaped strategically from its ties. Her eyes were somewhat narrowed, and her voice was too soft. Reno's thoughts ran mechanically as he watched her numbly: Predator. Cat.  
  
Scarlet continued to prowl towards them.  
  
"Heidegger gave the order you know. That means you have to go. Oh, they say the company is collapsing and it's the end for all of us, but we know better, don't we?" She brushed up against Reno, her more than slightly malicious grin widening when he only nodded stiffly. Elena and Rude merely stared straight ahead while Scarlet continued to purr and pace around.  
  
"Now I suppose you do have a choice here. On one hand you could turn tail and run, forgetting everything we've ever done for you and everything you owe to us." She turned sharply to stare Elena in the face before stalking towards her when she got no reaction. "Because, and make no mistake, WE are Shinra now."  
  
"On the other hand," she changed tact again, suddenly all honeyed sweetness once more. "You could stay loyal to the company, earning yourself a place in Shinra's history, and pocketbooks. You wouldn't soon forget whose blue suits you're wearing, now would you?" She patted Rude lightly on the cheek before whirling towards Reno one last time.  
  
"Choices? What good are they when we all know what you're going to choose, hmm?" She smiled widely showing a row of perfect white teeth before turning her back. She waved a hand dismissively towards them in a paw-like gesture signaling their dismissal. "Kill them once for me."  
  
Reno managed to keep together until the door shut behind him with a click. Elena and Rude were beside him, both equally shaken although only showing varying degrees of it. Reno thought he could still hear Scarlet humming through the layers of metal between them. His thoughts swimming, he thought somewhat light-headedly of the collapsed floors far above where the President's body still lay somewhere, undiscovered, and of Scarlet with her blood red nails.  
  
With that, he fled.  
  
//If I traded it all  
//If I gave it all away for one thing  
//Just for one thing  
//If I sorted it out  
//If I knew all about this one thing  
//Wouldn't that be something?  
  
The three of them walked silently through the underground tunnels. They picked their way carefully; many sections of the tunnels were falling in as a direct result of Weapon's blast. It was dark down here, as many of the lights were out for good, but all three had perfect Mako-enhanced night vision. Reno stepped cautiously over a fallen bit of masonry from overhead, and tried not to look up.  
  
Elena was shivering a little even though she still wore the blue jacket. They all did. Reno pulled his a little tighter around him and felt vaguely claustrophobic for the first time in his life. Even Rude had removed his sunglasses, and neither was it purely because of the darkness. They all kept their faces very still as they walked, although it was obvious Elena was itching to ask the question none of them was actually able to verbalize. Rude never asked questions, and Reno was more or less in charge. He knew all too well that when you're in the lead, you never stop to ask or to think. In rough times, people don't want a friend or someone who'll listen to their concerns. They want someone who knows what they're doing, who can make decisions.  
  
Decisions. As 'leader-by-default' they would inevitably come down to him. He warily pushed past the remnants of a wall that was leaning at an altogether unnatural angle and concentrated on keeping walking.  
  
Was it the end? Scarlet hadn't seemed to think so, meaning she probably had something up her sleeve - or her ever-increasingly short skirt. Even so, she'd need time, which the Turks had surely been sent to provide. It was what they were for, what they did; killed stole, kidnapped, whatever. They'd do what they were paid to and protect those at the top like the easily expendable suits that they were.  
  
Elena looked scared, he realized. Her brown eyes were fixed with unusual concentration in front of her, and she seemed to be fidgeting a lot less than normal. Jesus, how often did he forget she was just a rookie? She wasn't prepared for any of this. Then again, were any of them? Was he? Sure, she'd only been a Turk for a few weeks, but he'd been one virtually his whole life. Where was he supposed to go if it all fell apart? This was the first time Reno had ever realized just what Tseng had meant about decisions. Who was he to choose for the other two, anyway? Although, he knew that as Turks they'd follow anything he said. And as for himself? He'd never had to make a real decision for himself since putting on the jacket and glasses. But, oh, right. Everyone already knew what they'd choose, he reflected somewhat bitterly.  
  
Just then, a screeching sound came from the roof, the sound of metal grinding on metal that makes the blood run cold. Dust showered down around them.  
  
"Run!" The yell came from Rude, the first to react, but dirt and concrete were already falling around them.  
  
Reno looked up sharply in one of those frozen moments with the instinct for danger born only of years of life-or-death experience. He was just in time to see the main structure give way with a final groan, and a thick steel beam come loose and start to descend with alarming speed towards Elena.  
  
Although he often gave the impression of indolence to the casual observer, he knew how to act. Pure adrenaline took over as he bolted forward, hitting Elena in a wild flying leap that sent them both tumbling backwards. It was the last thing he was aware of before a huge grinding crash rang in his ears and the world went dark.  
  
//I promise I might  
//Not walk on by  
  
They say that before you die your entire life passes before your eyes. Reno had never been able to say for certain; he'd only ever seen other people's pass away before him. Now however, he must certainly be dead. Except this wasn't his life. Not the one he'd known, anyway. He was pretty certain it'd involved a lot more alleyways and blood, for sure.  
  
Everything was white, and he lost coherent consciousness.  
  
//Maybe next time  
//But not this time  
  
It was a small house in a small town, from the looks of it. It was very picturesque; average size with white walls and a small flower garden out front. Windows with glass panes peered out at him, and the red door seemed strangely familiar. Reno found himself standing just a small ways from the bottom of the step. He looked around, but the landscape seemed to fade away as he watched. Only this house, and the dirt path he stood on seemed to have any substance at all. Unable to think clearly, he watched a little dizzily as the red door swung open and a little girl tumbled out.  
  
She was very young, perhaps three years old. She had unruly auburn hair that glittered in the sun as it fell down her back and freckles across her nose that matched. She smiled as she climbed gingerly down the front steps of the house before yelling something back through the still open door. She had brown eyes that pulled at him, and she wore a pale blue dress that was already a little dirty at the hem.  
  
When she got down onto the path, she boldly stomped her feet before looking up at him. Or at least he thought she was looking at him - after a moment he realized it seemed as though she were looking through him. She smiled again, and broke into a run straight for him. Uncertain of what to do, he just stood and watched as she charged right at him. And then through him. The shock of her passing through him was like a cold flicker, nothing more. She did not register it at all, and when he turned to try to yell something to her he found neither could he speak.  
  
He wanted to warn her not to go down the path, that it was all white that way, but when he looked again it was sunny and full of green grass and a man was coming down the path. When the girl saw him, she yelled happily, and began to run towards him. The man laughed too, and he covered the distance in just a few steps, scooping the girl up in his arms while she laughed and laughed. He had long red hair tied back in a lopsided ponytail, and blue eyes that were turned up in a smile. It was him, he realized with a pang of something a mixture of nervousness and guilt. It was him and he was happy, wearing an ordinary white shirt and plain clothes.  
  
For a second the world seemed to glitch and fuzz out around him, and he saw all at once and one at a time many, many moments. It was the other him again, walking with a woman and sometimes the little girl. The woman always had her back to him, but she was very small had had short brown hair. He knew her laugh, her anger, and her warm arms. He watched her wrap those arms around the him on the path and the little girl. Here they had little money and they lived quietly so few people would know where they were, he knew.  
  
He could register little now, and his last thought was that this never happened, and never would. No place was like this, and no one could be like the woman the man with the red hair held tightly to him outside the house. There were no blinding lights here, no blame and no blood stained walls; this was not his life.  
  
The final thing he saw before everything disappeared for good was the woman turn her head, and the look of surprise on her perfect face and large, bright brown eyes as it all faded away.  
  
//If I traded it all  
//If I gave it all away for one thing  
//Just for one thing  
  
The new world that formed around him was introduced with a prelude of images; a huge weapon, three figures he vaguely recognized as AVALANCHE on the ground, Scarlet laughing.  
  
When it'd solidified, the place he watched was definitely a lot more like the home he knew. He saw himself again, but this version still wore the jacket. This time, time seemed to be running as fast as it possibly could. He watched as Shinra re-established itself, rising back out the ashes almost in backwards motion with the Turks suddenly very rich and the center of attention. It blurred a few times as he watched - choices that hadn't been made yet, he somehow knew. But he felt as though it were being steered towards the best possible outcome, and he watched as a new gun was developed that solidified the northern barrier, trapping everything inside indefinitely. A temporary solution.  
  
He watched as missions rolled by him at breakneck speed, saw Elena buy a new car and die the next day. Saw Rude fall during some value-less mission to Junon, and saw himself get lucky every time as new faces filled the empty slots. There were bright lights, the Honey Bee Inn, hundreds of bars, beautiful cars and much more. It all rolled by him, and he watched as he was shot in the head in one of the reactors by a new group of terrorists, no more than 30 years old, just like he'd always known he'd wind up.  
  
It continued to roll by him, though now it began to lose its color and focus, until all was black. He saw it and he knew it as the future, and Reno realized that he had made peace with this life and this death a long time ago.  
  
//If I sorted it out  
//If I knew all about this one thing  
//Wouldn't that be something?  
  
He came to under the rubble, gasping for breath. His jacket seemed all right but the front of his shirt was in tatters and he was scraped and battered for all he was worth. A trickle of blood ran down his forehead, and he tasted it in his mouth too. Coughing, he tried to sit up but was stopped by an excruciating ripping pain in his side. With a deep breath, he just let emergency training take over. He automatically reached for the materia stashed in the band around his left arm. The low level Cure materia was second from the right, and he held it tightly as he let the healing magic wash over him. He let himself relax for a moment, as he felt most of the pain slowly disappear until it was just a dull throb.  
  
Ever so slowly, he tried to sit up again, and succeeded with minimal trouble. The tunnel was hard to see in now because the air was filled with a thick gray dust that choked him and stuck in his lungs. Forcing himself to breathe slowly, he had just started to survey the area when he heard Elena's voice.  
  
"Reno!"  
  
The next thing he knew, both Elena and Rude were beside him, Elena crouching down next to him. Elena looked very worried, and Rude looked visibly concerned although neither of them looked too much the worse for the wear. Reno groaned slightly and attempted to use Elena's shoulder as a support to help him stand.  
  
"Reno, are you okay!? You idiot! You nearly got yourself killed back there when you came flying into me!"  
  
None of the usual smart-ass jokes came when he looked for them, and he became aware that for the first time there was actually no reason in the slightest to strike a pose anyway. Trying to stop from coughing desperately he leaned on Elena who was now standing and supporting him.  
  
".I'll be okay 'Lena. Don't worry." He managed a weak smile, which in effect made Elena worry more rather than less.  
  
Rude said nothing, but clasped Reno's shoulder warmly as Elena began a mostly futile attempt to try to navigate her way out of the rubble. She kept shooting Reno worried glances and he had to fight back the urge to tell her not to be so weak, not to worry about him. He was a Turk, after all. It was his job to die down here. Wasn't it? He began to cough once more. What was his job again?  
  
Slowly, they managed to put the worst of the debris behind them. Elena tried not to talk much, and Rude caught them both when they stumbled. Reno seemed to have gotten the worst of the injuries, and when Rude turned up a nearly mastered Cure materia Reno suddenly found he felt a lot better.  
  
Feeling the warming effects of the magic wear away, Reno stretched his arms up. He turned just in time to see Elena shoot him a dark look.  
  
"You stupid idiot! Do you know how much you made us worry!? We were searching all through everything, not knowing if we were looking for your corpse or not." She actually seemed on the verge of tears, and Reno felt a strange urge to comfort her. However, he let it pass, and instead concentrated on thinking up an appropriate answer .  
"Well, Rookie, you should know it'd take more than that to kill an amazing Turk like m-"  
  
The sound of voices coming up the hallway stopped him entirely short. A quick glance around showed they had wandered into the juncture between the main tunnel and the branch leading up to the city. The dark, crumbling walls pressed in and Reno's head swam again proving without room for doubt that there was indeed still healing that needed to be done. Trying to keep his concentration, he reached into his jacket to where his concealed nightstick resided. He wrapped his fingers around it for a moment before pulling his hand away.  
  
He recognized the voices as they got closer; the obnoxious ninja brat and the cat-thing accompanied Strife from the sound of it. Footsteps rang just around the corner, and Reno raised his chin as he waited for AVALANCHE.  
  
He could feel a choice just waiting, and no one could know what the outcome would be because it was his to choose.  
  
//Even though I know  
//I don't want to know  
//Yeah I guess I know  
//I just hate how it sounds  
  
"Shinra's finished. It's come down to this." Reno turned his head to indicate the wreckage behind them. Elena just stared at him uncomprehendingly while Rude smiled slightly knowingly. Strife eyed them all suspiciously, but he seemed willing to listen.  
  
Reno just shook his head before turning to Elena who didn't seem able to speak.  
  
"Elena, you were a great Turk," he said quietly before turning away. He knew he was limping a little, but injuries had nothing to do with the choice. If they fought, Scarlet would have enough time to perfect her monstrosity.  
  
It was so strange. He'd never felt this clear-headed before, like everything was set out in front of him. Sure, they might still die in this stupid maze, but this was his and even after years of wearing the jacket Shinra still hadn't taken it away from him. Everything - the cigarettes in his pocket, the sarcastic remark always on hand - it all seemed somehow irrelevant now.  
  
With a casual look back towards AVALANCHE, he gave them a cool appraisal. They'd been enemies, and he'd done things to them and to people they'd cared about that would be certain there would never be any forgiveness. He smiled his old razor blade smile and gave them a final nod of the head.  
  
"Farewell. If we both survive." There was no ending to that sentence. He tried again. "If we can save our lives." No, there was nothing left to be said that hadn't been laid out in blood or with the blue jacket he'd tossed on the floor when Strife had drawn his sword. Just hurry, was his last thought as he did all there was left to do and turned to leave.  
  
//If I traded it all  
//If I gave it all away for one thing  
//Just for one thing  
  
He could see Rude already moving to follow him, and Elena just about to overcome her hesitation. He was their leader now, and right or wrong they would follow his decisions until they died trying. He'd see that that changed, but for now they could start with getting the hell out of here.  
  
Just for a moment, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of brown eyes watching him that made him stop. The ninja girl was glaring at him, hands on her hips with her shuriken on hand, the only AVALANCHE member to register that he was still here. He stood in the shadows for a brief second; just to let the other two catch up.  
  
When he moved forward again it was with a real smile that reached further than it had in a long, long time. He knew those eyes, and somehow, he had the feeling he would see them again.  
  
//If I sorted it out  
//If I knew all about this one thing //Wouldn't that be something?  
  
A/N: Hey guys! Long time no see! Just want to say that I hope to have something else posted for Valentine's Day. :) 


End file.
